With winter fast approaching, households and whānau are again facing rising costs, with Stats NZ reporting on May 1 that the cost of living for the average household increased by 7.7 percent in the 12 months to March 2023.

“Food prices increased by 12 per cent for the average household, which was the main contributor for most household groups,” consumer prices manager James Mitchell said.

With food poverty on the increase even for some households with two incomes, the Pātaka Kai or Open Street Pantry Movement has become essential for some Central Otago residents.

The movement is a resident-led, grassroots, community-sourced solution to immediate and local need, while also rescuing food and encouraging co-sharing between neighbours to strengthen communities. 

All street pātaka (pantries) are stocked organically with the central theme being to take what you need and give what you can.  

The Cromwell Community Pantry has been in use since 2019 and is located outside Cromwell Community House.

Community House manager Karen Palmer said it operates on the same ethos as others: “You give, you take, you can also donate”.

“When there is food at the pantry it is always used,” she said. “We would like to have the community donate more.”

They were seeing an increase in the need for food support across the community and she believed there would be an increase in need compared to last year, Karen said.

The Pātaka Kai out the back of the Salvation Army Headquarters in Royal Terrace, Alexandra, came from a desire to reduce food waste, said Salvation Army Corps Officer Captain Logan Bathurst.

The Combined Churches Food Bank operates out of the same building, and having the Pātaka Kai also gives an outlet for food that might be wasted.

“For us, the main purpose of having one was to make use of stock in our food bank that we might not be able to use so we are not wasting it,” Logan said.

“We are working with supermarkets and other organisations to make sure they don’t waste food, so we don’t want to be wasting food we couldn’t cycle through our food bank.”

He expected this winter would be harder on local residents than those before. 

“We do see a bit of a blip over winter anyway but this year will be worse with the high cost of living.”

Community consultant Jess Nichol, Able Minds part-time activities coordinator and part-time fieldworker Claire Scherp, Able Minds part-time activities coordinator Sally Jory and Uruuruwhenua Kaumatua Kaimahi Karen Beazley display some of the fresh produce donated this week.

The Manuherikia Pātaka Kai - Community Pantry was very much an organic conception that grew from community need and was built and is cared for by the community. 

Led by Uruuruwhenua Health and Able Minds, the pantry was built by the Men’s Shed Alexandra with materials from Pacemakers and mesh provided by Central Otago Sports Depot.

Able Minds part-time activities coordinator and fieldworker Claire Scherp said not only was the community supporting the pantry by donating but also by caring for the food inside.

“It’s been really well-supported by donors and recipients, and by people you might not think could donate items.”

She said the major organisational donors included New World Alexandra, who had just come on-board, and Chatto Creek Hotel and baking organisation Good Bitches.

Large bags of such things as rice or baking ingredients were bagged in smaller amounts by Able Minds clients, which allowed them to also give back to the community, Claire said.

Some regular donors also provided bagged ingredients for a meal, such as soup.

Uruuruwhenua Kaumatua Kaimahi Karen Beazley also said the pantry was great for reducing food waste as some donors took away produce approaching being over-ripe and drying it or making it into sauces.

Community consultant Jess Nichol, herself a young mother, said the pantry will be essential for some whānau over winter.

“There are a lot of people out there who, with increased food costs and everything else, can’t always afford food,” she said.